


Establishing Conversations

by BleuSarcelle



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Alternate Universe - Lifeguards, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Female Pronouns for Pidge | Katie Holt, First Meetings, Fluff and Humor, Keith and Shiro are Siblings, Kidge BroTP, Lifeguard Lance, M/M, Minor Allura/Shiro (Voltron), Pining, Pining Keith (Voltron)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-09-08
Updated: 2017-09-08
Packaged: 2018-12-25 09:57:38
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,495
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12033531
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BleuSarcelle/pseuds/BleuSarcelle
Summary: Maybe it was the dark smooth looking skin.Nah, it was probably the fine jaw line, or maybe the cheekbones. Hair? Maybe? Curly on the ends with a few bangs falling on his face. It might have been the sharp blue eyes that roamed around the pool like a hawk.All that Keith knows is that his gay heart needs to talk to that lifeguard, right now.“Pidge, I need you to push me to the pool right now and let me drown.”(OR the one where Keith pines for the hot lifeguard and tries all day to talk to him some how. It doesn't end like he expected.)





	Establishing Conversations

**Author's Note:**

> Let this writer blooooooooock eeeeeeeeeeend uuuuuugh.
> 
> Disclaimer: Voltron doesn't belong to me.

Maybe it was the dark smooth looking skin.

Nah, it was probably the fine jaw line, or maybe the cheekbones. Hair? Maybe? Curly on the ends with a few bangs falling on his face. It might have been the sharp blue eyes that roamed around the pool like a hawk. The tense and flexing muscles ready for any kind of move might have been another reason, who knows.

All that Keith knows is that his gay heart needs to talk to that lifeguard,  _ right now _ . 

“Pidge, I need you to push me to the pool right now and let me drown.” 

The fifteen years old besides him snorts while pulling her backpack higher on her shoulder, eyes never leaving the screen of her phone as she continues walking towards their spot saved by Keith’s brother. 

“Yeah, no, thanks. Lance would kill me if I try attempted murder in his pool.”

Keith blinks, gaze finally leaving the lifeguard’s form to look at his friend. “Lance?” he asks, eyebrow arched in confusion frowning in confusion when he sees Pidge's a few steps ahead of him. He jogs lazily until he’s back to her right side, his flip flops slapping against the wet ground of the pool, “Who the heck is Lance?” 

Pidge laughs this time, shaking her head in disbelief, “It’s the guy who you just made heart eyes to not five seconds ago, loser.” 

“You know him?” Keith hisses under his breath and Pidge sends him an unimpressed look.

“Yeah, he’s my partner lab at school, along with Hunk.” Pidge grins, “Like, that one time I told you I managed to fill the entire lab with bubbles and foam? Lance helped me; it was legendary.” 

“Oh, cool.” Keith blinks, eyes shifting from her to the lifeguard before back to her, “Okay, but seriously, push me to the pool right now.”

Pidge cackles, taking seat on the chair and pulling out a towel from her backpack. “You poor awkward fool, just go talk to him, Keith.”

“He’s  _ working _ .” Keith stresses out, waving his hands towards Lance, clearing point at the way the brunet’s eyes are scanning every single corner on the pool in front of him, alert and on edge, “I can’t just go up there and be like ‘ _ yes, hi, love your face _ ’, that’s like super disrespectful when he’s clearly busy.”

“And you think establishing a conversation with him after he saves you from drowning is a better idea?” Pidge asks, raising an eyebrow at him before waving at the silent body a few chairs from her own, “Hey, Shiro.”

The older teen hums as a greeting from his laying down position, sunglasses still in place.

“Well,  _ he would be doing his job _ .” Keith shrugs, a clear blush on his cheeks that Pidge know it’s not from the sun, “I mean, it’s a solid plan. Right, Shiro?”

“I don’t even want to know.” Shiro deadpans and doesn't see the unimpressed glare Keith sends his way.

Pidge shrugs. “Yeah, okay, well, Romeo, you have the entire day to figure it out. For now? Come here and help me get the sunscreen on my back because unlike you, I don’t want to turn into a shrimp.” 

“That was one time and I was like ten years old, let it die.”

“Never.”

 

* * *

 

“I never thought you would sink so low, Kogane.”

“Pidge, you rejected my drowning plan, now face the consequences.”

“This is so cartoonish.”

“What is cartoonish about hiding behind a pair of bushes right behind the lifeguard post?”

Pidge limits herself to send him a deadpanned glare.

Keith waves his hand half-heartedly at her. “Look, it’s simple: we wait until Lance gets his next break and then I intersect him on the way and establish a conversation: smooth, casual and funny! It’s a foolproof plan!”

“At least you are positive, because that plan has so many holes, dude.” 

“Sh, sh, here comes the next lifeguard!” Keith hisses quietly, “Act natural!” 

Pidge scrunches her nose in confusion as she raises her arms and looks around her, wondering how the heck could she be acting natural behind a bush like a stalker but Keith doesn't let her voice her thoughts.

They stare in silence as the new lifeguard on shift, Allura, as Pidge had helpfully supplied earlier, chats briefly with Lance and the brunet replies casually, grin wide and excited as he talks and laughs.

Pidge rolls her eyes as she hears Keith’s dreamy sigh next to her. She about to cross her arms over her chest and lean back, accepting her task with a resigned sigh, when she catches the sight of Keith’s arm and frowns.

“Keith, wait, your arm is red.” She squints at the angry red mark on Keith’s right arm, eyebrow arching in confusion at the spot. It didn’t looked like a sunburn, and it was way too early for being one too because they haven’t been on the pool for more than half an hour.

“Allergies,” is Keith’s automatic response, eyes never the pair of lifeguards a few steps from them, “My skin is not in the best terms with grass or just nature in general.” 

“Keith, you have fucking rash. How the  _ heck  _ -?”

“It’s fine. Look! They are saying goodbye! This is my chance!” 

“ _ Keith! _ No, come back here! Your eye - Keith!” Pidge groans, finally standing from her spot and cupping her hands over her mouth, “Shiro! Keith’s being a stubborn butt and he is having allergies!”

Shiro, being only a few feet away from them under their spot, raise an eyebrow at her before catching the moving figure of his brother, eyes quickly falling on the red angry rash on his brother’s arm.

Shiro rolls his eyes and lift himself up from the pool chair, walking over, intercepting Keith and picking him up, throwing him on his back and walking away, ignoring Keith’s indignant cries. 

Keith hangs his head and groans as his brother takes him further and further away from the lifeguard post, watching helplessly as Lance heads to the opposite way.

“If I die alone in this world is all your fault.” Keith glares at Pidge as she walks behind the brothers.

Pidge waves him off, “You will thank me later for not meeting the love of your life with puffy red cheeks and swollen eye.”

_ “I have what now!” _

 

* * *

 

“Why am I here again?” Shiro whines, huffing annoyed when his sunglasses fall from the top of his head to the bridge of his nose. He sends his little brother an exasperated glare which Keith ignores and if anything, it only makes him to tug his brother harder by the wrist of his left arm, his prosthetic off for the day. 

“Because you are my brother and you love me and you want me to find love, okay? Now hush and act like you are having the best time of your life, Lance is heading this way,” Keith says hurriedly, stopping right besides the edge of the pool, just a few feet away from the lifeguard post, “His shift starts in like five minutes, that’s time enough to woo him.” 

“Tell me again why can’t you just walk towards your crush and talk to him like a normal person?” Shiro sighs.

“No.”

Shiro groans, mouth opening to question him when two figures catch his eye behind Keith’s shoulder and his entire face lights up. “Hey, Allura! Lance!”

Keith freezes. 

No one can blame him for what he did next. No one can because what he did is totally justified when he turned his head to look behind him and the first thing that greeted him was a pair of ocean eyes and a beaming smile with white teeth.

Honestly, no one can blame him. 

“I must go.”

Three pair of eyes widen as Keith throws himself into the pool and it’s until the teen resurfaces on the other side of the pool, panting hard and ignoring everyone’s curious gaze as he pull himself out of the pool and screaming Pidge’s name, when they finally blink out of their surprise. 

“He seems nice.” Lance chuckles, eyes following Keith’s stumbling figure for a few seconds before turning back to the couple and blinking in confusion when they stare at him, “What?”

Both Shiro and Allura share a knowing look before they shrug. “Nothing.”

 

* * *

 

“Pidge, I don’t think this is a good idea.” 

Pidge scoffs, taking one last step before she's standing on the middle of the diving board. “Keith, it’s one hour before closing time, and you have yet to talk to Lance. Might as well go big or go home.”

“How is jumping from the highest diving board around, right below the deepest part of the pool, is considered _ ‘going big’  _ ?” Keith questions, eyebrow arches at her friend, standing hesitantly on the edge of the start of the board, “Why are you even up here with me?”

“Moral support, dummy.” Pidge shrugs, “Now, come forward, foolish boy! I know a few good diving jumps that will make Lance swoon on the spot!”

“Pidge I don’t really think -”

“Are you a chicken?” Pidge teases playfully, narrowing her eyes at her friend in challenge, “I didn’t know you were a scary cat, Keith.”

Keith flushes, “I’m not scared!” he shouts annoyed and Pidge laughs.

“Then come on! Here, all you gotta do is jump on your feet for a few seconds, to gather the necessary strength, and then you jump with your arms forward.” 

“Jumping before jumping?” Keith laughs, raising his hands in surrender when Pidge glares at him. 

“Yes, jumping like this.” She says before starting to jump on her spot, almost by the edge of the board and Keith frowns.

“Okay, buddy, now take it easy with the jumping and face forward, okay? I don’t think this is safe -”

“It’s fine, I have done this a lot of times.” Pidge scoffs, taking another jump and flashing him a smile, “See? I got everything un -”

Pidge gasps softly, quietly and surprised but for Keith it felt like a scream. He watches in slow motion as his friend’s eyes widen in surprise and then terror when her body leans back to the edge, hand stretched out to him, scared and vulnerable and then his name is being shout, bringing him back to reality.

“Keith!”

Keith doesn’t hesitate. He launched himself forward, grabbing her hand into his own but Pidge’s body makes them fall back, entirely off the board now. Keith only has enough time to push their bodies a little more onto the pool’s middle before he shifts and covers Pidge’s body with his own.

His back hits the water painfully and then he lets go of Pidge’s body, enough for the girl to move freely and push herself up into the surface.

Keith helps her, grabbing her by the arm to pull her forward and then soon enough they are back in the surface. His hand immediately find the pool’s edge and he hisses when a few of the rocks slice his palm. He ignores the pain and pulls Pidge up with him. 

Keith takes a deep breath, shaking his head to get rid of the excess of water on his face before he turns to look at Pidge.

“We’re not doing that again.” Keith says flatly and Pidge, still panting and coughing slightly, turns to look at him and she cracks a small smile.

“Pidge! Keith!”

Both teens turn their heads and their eyes widen when they see Shiro, Allura and Lance running towards them. 

“Are you okay? What happened? Is anyone hurt?” Shiro asks, stretching his arms towards Keith as Lance pulls Pidge up.

“I’m fine, we’re fine, Shiro.” Keith reassurance, a cough escaping his mouth and wincing when Shiro’s hand grabs his wounded hand. 

Shiro frowns at the action and his eyes fall on the bloody gash. “Keith!” 

“It’s fine!” Keith groans, raising his other hand for his brother to take. Shiro rolls his eyes but still grabs the offered hand, pulling almost effortlessly his brother up.

“Dude, what is  _ wrong  _ with you?” Lance snaps, turning around to face him once he places a dry towel over Pidge’s shoulders, an angry scowl on his face and Keith has to suppress the shiver that runs down his spine when those stormy eyes focus their wrath on him, “I saw you the way you were on the diving board. It’s bad enough you two were there at the same time but  _ jumping _ ? Are you out of your  _ mind _ ?” 

Keith blinks, mouth open in shock, unsure of what to say. “I -It’s not what you think, I was just trying to -” 

“You think this is a game? Safety is everything here, dude, you cannot take it so carelessly when people’s lives are at risk.” Lance scoffs, “It’s all fun and games until someone gets hurt. It’s my  _ job  _ to make sure no one does, especially under  _ my  _ watch, if you think that -!”

“Okay, alright, let’s all calm down for a second here.” Shiro steps in, putting himself between Lance and Keith, flesh hand pressed against Lance’s chest in a silent warning, “It was an accident, that much is clear. Let’s just be thankful that it didn’t escalated from a few small bruises.” 

“Lance, it wasn’t his fault.” Pidge tries to reason, eyebrows furrow together in distress on behalf of her best friend, “I didn’t mean for it to backfired like that.”

“It doesn’t really matter at the moment,” Allura declares, eyes firm and unwavering as they lock in with her partner’s pair, “ _ Right, Lance? _ ” 

Lance spares her a glance fore he sighs and drops his shoulders, losing their anger but still tense. “Yeah, okay, whatever. Come on, Pidge, I have some ointment back in the shack for that bruise on your forehead.”

Pidge frowns. “But Keith -!”

“I will take care of Keith, Pidge, don’t worry.” Allura reassurance, nodding at the younger teen with a soft smile. 

The fifteen years old hesitates, eyes locking with Keith’s for a second but it’s until Keith smiles at her, nodding softly, that she sighs and follows Lance towards the small shack at the entrance of the pool.

As soon as Pidge’s eyes are off him, Keith drops his head in defeat, leaning forward and putting both of his elbows on his knees.

Allura watches him sadly before she takes a seat beside shim on the pool chair, taking his open hand gently.

“It doesn’t look so deep,” Allura purses her lips, eyes narrowed as she looks over Keith’s wound, being careful of not upsetting more the gash on the palm of his right hand, “Let me get the first aid kit to clean it and bandage it properly, I’ll be right back.”

Keith only nods silently, eyes still on the ground, missing the concern look between Shiro and Allura. 

“I’m going to load the car with the bags and then bring it around, alright?” Shiro says after a few seconds in silence, hand over his brother’s shoulder, squeezing tight, “Are you sure you are okay?” 

Keith nods, offering a small smile to the older teen. “I’ll be fine, you worry cat, it’s just a small cut.”

That’s not what Shiro had meant and Keith knows it, but the older teen decides not to push. Instead, he nods, squeezing his brother’s shoulder one more time before he lifts himself from the pool chair and heads towards the exit.

Keith sighs once his brother’s out of his sight and drops his face back to his open unharmed palm. The sunset is almost gone just like most of the families, and the few groups of friends left behind were already packing their things and calling it a day.

Yeah, what a day, full of failure and humiliation.

God, he will probably have to change schools and he will never be welcome back in the neighbourhood’s pool after this. Great, now he will be stuck in his room like a melted puddle the entire summer. 

Now to mention he will never be able to see Lance in the face again, if he ever sees him again, that is, because Keith’s pretty sure he might as well just move to Canada. His mom told him Quebec is nice during summer. 

He couldn’t even had the courage to say ‘hi’ to Lance and now he will never have the chance to do so. 

What a loser.

Keith winces when he unconsciously tries to clench his hand and his wound stings him sharply. He brushes the edge of the swollen skin around the wound gently, wiping away some of the blood. 

“Hey, man.”

Keith lifts his head slowly before his eyes widen in surprise when he meets a pair of blue dark eyes above him. He chokes, mouth open in shock as Lance shifts on his spot nervously.

“Lemme see that?” he mumbles quietly, not waiting for an answer before taking the free seat next to Keith and taking the pale hand carefully into his own, turning it slowly, “Allura had to close so I’m here. Open your palm a little more?”

Keith does as he’s told to but he’s eyes are frozen on Lance’s face as the brunet clicks his tongue in deep thought, eyes still scanning the small wound.

“Alright I think -”

“I’m sorry.”

Lance’s eyes finally meet his own, wide and surprised at the sudden apology and Keith doesn't blame him.

“I didn’t - I mean, I know you’re good at your job, amazing even, always alert in case you are needed and that’s incredible, but it was an accident and I never intended for Pidge to get hurt, believe me that’s the last thing I -”

“Hey, now,” Lance cuts him off, not unkindly, a small amused twitch on his lips, “It’s alright, Pidge explained everything to me, man. I appreciate the apology though.”

“E-Everything?” Keith swallows, groaning when Lance nods, attention once again on the wound.

“Yep.” Lance replies while taking out a small bottle from the first aid kit, “Now, hold still, this might sting.”

“I’m not a bab -  _ Ouch! _ ”

“You were saying?” Lance teases, grin playful and amused as Keith grumbles and looks away with a pout and an angry blush on his cheeks.

They stay in silence, except for the quiet soft humming leaving Lance’s mouth as he cleans the wound properly and wraps with tight with a waterproof gauze. 

“Thank you,” Keith mumbles as Lance lets go of his hand.

The brunet nods, “You’re welcome.”

There’s an awkward pause, neither of them looking at each other until Lance clears his throat.

“I’m...I’m sorry too.” He says, hand running through his hair anxiously, “I didn’t mean to snap at you and I’m sorry for that, especially when you didn’t deserve it.”

“That’s okay, you were just doing your job.” Keith reassurance, offering a small smile, “I can respect that. Being a lifeguard is not easy.”

“You’re right about that.” Lance snickers, shoulders losing their tension, “I love my job, believe me, but damn is it hard to meet new people because of it, ya know.”

Keith hums, nerves finally calming down as the seconds go by. “That’s understandable, I mean, my original plan to talk to you was to drown myself so you would be doing your job, ya know? Hah, wild, right?”

“Hah, man, that’s - Wait what?”

Keith blinks, mouth open in confusion at the brunet’s shocked expression. “Oh. Oh no, Pidge didn’t told you about...”

Lance shakes his head slowly. “No...Pidge just explained the jumping on the board accident she didn’t…” he trails off, eyes widening in realization.

“Um...Okay then, so, this is heavily awkward and I think I might really do my original plan and drown myself because woah, look at the time, it’s time to die embarrassed,  _ hah _ .” Keith scrambles, pushing himself off the chair but a hand on his wrist doesn’t allow him to take another step forward.

“Woah, woah, woah, cowboy, no drowning while I’m off duty.” Lance says, a soft chuckles leaving his lips, “You know,  _ off duty _ . Like, not required to do my job at the moment? Totally able to meet new interesting awkward people? Like a certain mullet head?”

Keith blinks bemused, looking around the pool ground for the person Lance’s referring to before snapping his attention back to the brunet when he hears him snort.

“You! I mean you, oh my god.” Lance snickers, letting go of Keith’s wrist as he shakes with laughter.

Keith purses his lips, “I don’t have a mullet.”

“Sure, sure,” Lance waves him off before he stands up, taking a step towards Keith, shifting his feet on the ground, excepting something, “So?”

“Well…” Keith pushes down the butterflies on his stomach as he holds out his clean hand, “I’m Keith.”

Lance blinks for a second, eyes dropping to look at the offered hand before looking back up at Keith.

“Hi, Keith,” he smiles, small and shy, as he takes the pale hand. “I’m Lance.”

“I know.”

“What?”

“Wait, no!”

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading! 
> 
> Here’s my tumblr, just in case: [bleusarcelle](http://bleusarcelle.tumblr.com)  
> AND my writing tumblr for small drabbles I don't post here: [bleusarcellewrites](http://bleusarcellewrites.tumblr.com)


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